Columbus Line adds Far East coverage to AMPAC service profile

Columbus Line ( general agent in Korea : Dongbo shipping Co., Ltd.) is assuming an active role in the Far East service leg of its West Coast Americas (AMPAC) service alliance by adding its own vessel to that rotation and marketing space to customers interested in moving cargoes between Asia and West Coast markets in the U.S., Mexico, Central and South America. The service upgrade will commence on or about December 12, 2000, with the sailing of the 'COLUMBUS PACIFIC' at Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

In May of this year Columbus Line and service partners, Maruba and TMM, established two AMPAC vessel slings, covering a full range of ports from Vancouver to southern Chile.

A "long string" of three vessels, two supplied by Columbus Line, ('COLUMBUS PACIFIC and 'COLUMBUS MEXICO) operating on a 42-day round trip rotation between Vancouver, Seattle, San Francisco, Long Beach and West Coast Latin American ports as far south as Lirquen, Chile.

A second string operating between Hong Kong, Kaohsiung, Shanghai, Busan, Long Beach and West Coast South American ports.

Columbus Line is shifting the COLUMBUS PACIFIC to that rotation. The COLUMBUS MEXICOand COLUMBUS PACIFIC(1,150 TEUs/150 reefer plugs) are equipped with on-board cranes to facilitate cargo movements in those Latin American ports with limited shoreside resources.